Brian Augustyn (November 2, 1954 – February 1, 2022) was an American comic book editor and writer. He often worked as editor or co-writer with writer
Mark Waid
Mark Waid (; born March 21, 1962) is an American comic book writer best known for his work on DC Comics titles ''The Flash'', '' Kingdom Come'' and '' Superman: Birthright'' as well as his work on ''Captain America'', ''Fantastic Four'' and '' Dar ...
, such as on
''The Flash'' in the 1990s. He wrote ''
Gotham by Gaslight
''Gotham by Gaslight'' is a DC Comics one-shot by Brian Augustyn and Mike Mignola, with inks by P. Craig Russell. The story revolves around a 19th-century version of Bruce Wayne making his debut as Batman just as Jack the Ripper has arrived in G ...
–'' which imagines
Batman
Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on ...
tracking
Jack the Ripper
Jack the Ripper was an unidentified serial killer active in and around the impoverished Whitechapel district of London, England, in the autumn of 1888. In both criminal case files and the contemporaneous journalistic accounts, the killer wa ...
– the prototype of DC's
Elseworlds
''Elseworlds'' was the publication imprint (trade name), imprint for American comic books produced by DC Comics for stories that took place outside the DC Universe Canon (fictional), canon. Elseworlds publications are set in alternate realitie ...
imprint, which featured versions of their characters in alternate settings.
Career
Editing
Augustyn got his start in the industry in 1986 as an editor for Tru Studios' ''Trollords''. He then edited ''Syphons'' and ''
Speed Racer
''Speed Racer'', also known as , is a Japanese media franchise about Auto racing, automobile racing. ''Mach GoGoGo'' was originally serialized in print in Shueisha's 1966 ''Shōnen Book''. It was released in tankōbon book form by Sun W ...
'' for
NOW Comics
NOW Comics was a comic book publisher founded in late 1985 by Tony C. Caputo as a sole-proprietorship. During the four years after its founding, NOW grew from a one-man operation to operating in 12 countries, and published almost 1,000 comic book ...
in 1987. In 1988, he joined
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery.
DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...
, starting out as a co-editor on ''
Action Comics
''Action Comics'' is an American comic book/Comic anthology, magazine series that introduced Superman, one of the first major superhero characters. The publisher was originally known as National Allied Publications, and later as National Comics ...
'' during its period as a weekly title, and later ''The Flash'', ''
Justice League
The Justice League (also known as The Justice League of America) are a team of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The team first appeared in ''The Brave and the Bold'' #28 (March 1960). The team was conceived ...
'', and the
Impact Comics
Impact Comics was an imprint of DC Comics that was aimed at younger audiences. It began in 1991 and ended in 1993. The initial "I" in the logo was stylized as an exclamation point, but the official name of the imprint was not ''!mpact''.
Impact ...
line of titles.
As editor of ''The Flash'' beginning in 1989, Augustyn hired
Mark Waid
Mark Waid (; born March 21, 1962) is an American comic book writer best known for his work on DC Comics titles ''The Flash'', '' Kingdom Come'' and '' Superman: Birthright'' as well as his work on ''Captain America'', ''Fantastic Four'' and '' Dar ...
as writer in 1992, which led to an acclaimed eight-year run. Other Augustyn/Waid editor/writer partnerships included ''
The Comet'' (DC/Impact, 1992) and ''Flash'' spin-off ''
Impulse
Impulse or Impulsive may refer to:
Science
* Impulse (physics), in mechanics, the change of momentum of an object; the integral of a force with respect to time
* Impulse noise (disambiguation)
* Specific impulse, the change in momentum per uni ...
'' (DC, 1995–1996). He won the
Wizard Fan Award for Favorite Editor in 1994.
He served as the managing editor of Visionary Comics Studio. He worked as story editor for publisher
Red Giant Entertainment
Red Giant Entertainment, Inc. is a Florida-headquartered comic book publisher and "transmedia" entertainment company established in 2005. Red Giant was founded by Benny R. Powell, former marketing writer for Priceline.com. Other key players in ...
and their ''Giant-Size Comics'' line of free print comic book titles which debuted in 2014.
Writing
As a solo writer, Augustyn worked on DC's ''
Batman: Gotham by Gaslight,'' its sequel ''Batman: Master of the Future'', and
Black Condor; Marvel's ''
Imperial Guard
An imperial guard or palace guard is a special group of troops (or a member thereof) of an empire, typically closely associated directly with the Emperor or Empress. Usually these troops embody a more elite status than other imperial forces, in ...
'';
Wildstorm Productions
Wildstorm Productions, (stylized as WildStorm), is an American comic book imprint. Originally founded as an independent company established by Jim Lee under the name "Aegis Entertainment" and expanded in subsequent years by other creators, Wildst ...
' ''Out There'' and ''
Crimson
Crimson is a rich, deep red color, inclining to purple.
It originally meant the color of the kermes dye produced from a scale insect, ''Kermes vermilio'', but the name is now sometimes also used as a generic term for slightly bluish-red colo ...
''; and
Dreamwave Productions
Dreamwave Productions was a Canadian art design studio and comic book publisher founded in 1996. Best known for its comic book adaptations of Transformers, the company shut down on January 4, 2005.
History
Brothers Pat Lee and Roger Lee founde ...
's ''
Mega Man
''Mega Man'', known as in Japan, is a Japanese science fiction video game franchise created by Capcom, starring a series of robot characters each known by the moniker "Mega Man (character), Mega Man". Mega Man (video game), The original game w ...
''.
As co-writers, Augustyn and Mark Waid scripted ''
The Crusaders'' for DC/Impact in 1992, ''
Painkiller Jane
Painkiller Jane is a fictional superhero created by Jimmy Palmiotti and Joe Quesada for Event Comics in 1995. Originally a five-issue mini-series, the character went on to star in numerous crossover titles with the likes of the Punisher, Vampirel ...
'' and ''Ash: Cinder & Smoke'' for
Event Comics
Event Comics was an American independent comic book publisher founded by veteran artists Jimmy Palmiotti and Joe Quesada. The company published during the years 1994 to 1999, at which point it was contracted to form the Marvel Knights imprint for ...
in 1997, ''
X-O Manowar
X-O Manowar (Aric of Dacia) is a fictional superhero co-created by writers Jim Shooter and Steve Englehart, and artists Bob Layton and Barry Windsor-Smith.
The eponymous comic book series published by Valiant Comics has sold more than 8 million c ...
'', vol. 2, for
Valiant Comics
Valiant Comics is an American comic book publisher. The company was founded in 1989 by former Marvel Comics editor-in-chief Jim Shooter along with lawyer and businessman Steven Massarsky. In 1994, the company was sold to Acclaim Entertainment ...
in 1997–1998, and ''JLA: Year One'' for DC in 1998–1999. After leaving his position as editor in 1996, Augustyn teamed with Waid to co-write ''The Flash'' in 1996–1997 and 1998–2000. They collaborated on ''The Life Story of the Flash'' graphic novel and co-wrote the story in ''The Flash'' #142 (October 1998) in which
Wally West
Wallace Rudolph "Wally" West is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics as the original Kid Flash and the third Flash (DC Comics character), Flash. His power consists mainly of speedster (fiction), superhuman speed. ...
married
Linda Park
Linda Park (born July 9, 1978) is a South Korean-born American actress, best known for her portrayal of communications officer character Hoshi Sato in the television series ''Star Trek: Enterprise''.
Early life
Park was born in South Korea and ...
.
In 2014,
Red Giant Entertainment
Red Giant Entertainment, Inc. is a Florida-headquartered comic book publisher and "transmedia" entertainment company established in 2005. Red Giant was founded by Benny R. Powell, former marketing writer for Priceline.com. Other key players in ...
announced that Augustyn was scripting a new ''Amped'' comic series which debuted in November as part of the monthly Giant-Sized line.
Personal life and death
Augustyn was born on November 2, 1954. He died from a stroke on February 1, 2022, at the age of 67 and is survived by his wife Nadine and daughters Carrie and Allie..
Bibliography
Comics work includes:
*''
Gotham by Gaslight
''Gotham by Gaslight'' is a DC Comics one-shot by Brian Augustyn and Mike Mignola, with inks by P. Craig Russell. The story revolves around a 19th-century version of Bruce Wayne making his debut as Batman just as Jack the Ripper has arrived in G ...
'' (with
Mike Mignola
Mike Mignola (; born September 16, 1960) is an American comics artist and writer best known for creating ''Hellboy'' for Dark Horse Comics, part of a shared universe of titles including ''B.P.R.D.'', '' Abe Sapien'', '' Lobster Johnson'', '' Wit ...
, one-shot, DC Comics, 1989)
*''
Black Mask'' (with
Jim Baikie
James George Baikie (28 February 1940 – 29 December 2017) was a Scottish comics artist best known for his work with Alan Moore on ''Skizz''. He was also a musician.
Biography
Baikie served as a Corporal with the Royal Air Force in 1956–1963 ...
, 2-issue mini-series, DC Comics, 1995)
*''
Crimson
Crimson is a rich, deep red color, inclining to purple.
It originally meant the color of the kermes dye produced from a scale insect, ''Kermes vermilio'', but the name is now sometimes also used as a generic term for slightly bluish-red colo ...
'' (with
Humberto Ramos
Humberto Ramos (born 27 November 1970) is a Mexican comic book penciller, best known for his work on American comic books such as ''Impulse'', '' Runaways'', ''The Spectacular Spider-Man'', ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' and his creator-owned series ...
, 24 issue series, Wildstorm Comics, 1998)
*Out There (with
Humberto Ramos
Humberto Ramos (born 27 November 1970) is a Mexican comic book penciller, best known for his work on American comic books such as ''Impulse'', '' Runaways'', ''The Spectacular Spider-Man'', ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' and his creator-owned series ...
, Wildstorm Comics, 1998)
References
External links
*
Visionary Comics StudioRed Giant Entertainment
{{DEFAULTSORT:Augustyn, Brian
1954 births
2022 deaths
American comics writers
Comic book editors
People from Chicago